Instruments
139 terms
Anglo concertina
A small, hexagonal free-reed instrument with buttons on both sides, producing different notes on push and pull of the bellows, central to Irish and English traditional music.
English horn
A double-reed woodwind instrument pitched a fifth below the oboe, known for its warm, melancholy tone color used extensively in orchestral music.
French horn
A coiled brass instrument with a wide, mellow tone and a flared bell.
Hammond organ
An electromechanical organ using rotating tonewheels and electromagnetic pickups, whose rich, harmonically complex sound defined gospel, jazz, and rock music.
Partch instruments
The custom-built instruments created by Harry Partch to realize his 43-tone just intonation system, including the Chromelodeon, Cloud Chamber Bowls, and Quadrangularis Reversum.
Rhodes
The Fender Rhodes is an electromechanical piano using hammer-struck tines and electromagnetic pickups, producing a distinctive bell-like tone iconic in jazz, soul, and funk.
Wurlitzer
An American brand of electromechanical pianos, most famously the Wurlitzer 200A, known for its warm, reedy tone used extensively in pop, rock, and soul recordings.
accordion
A portable reed instrument with a bellows, keys, and buttons.
accordion variants
The accordion family includes the piano accordion, button accordion, concertina, and bandoneon — all free-reed instruments powered by hand-operated bellows.
acoustic guitar
A guitar that produces sound naturally through its hollow wooden body without electronic amplification.
angklung
A Javanese and Sundanese instrument made of bamboo tubes mounted in a frame, shaken to produce notes.
autoharp
A chorded zither with damper bars that mute unwanted strings, allowing the player to strum full chords with one hand while pressing chord buttons with the other.
bagpipes
A wind instrument using enclosed reeds fed by a constant air supply from a bag.
balafon
A West African wooden xylophone with gourd resonators, central to the music of the Mandinka people.
balalaika
A Russian stringed instrument with a distinctive triangular body, three strings, and a bright, twangy tone, central to Russian folk and popular music.
bandoneon
A type of concertina essential to Argentine tango music, with a complex button layout and a distinctively reedy, expressive tone.
banjo
A string instrument with a circular drum-like body and typically four or five strings.
baritone saxophone
A large, deep-toned member of the saxophone family, pitched in E-flat.
bass clarinet
A large single-reed woodwind instrument pitched an octave below the standard B-flat clarinet, valued for its rich, dark low register.
bass drum
The largest drum in an orchestra or drum kit, producing a deep, resonant boom.
bass guitar
A four-stringed electric instrument that provides the rhythmic and harmonic foundation in popular music.
bassett horn
A member of the clarinet family in F, with an extended lower range and a warm, dark tone, favored by Mozart for its expressive qualities in his Masonic and operatic music.
bassoon
A large double-reed woodwind instrument with a deep, rich tone.
bell
The flared opening at the end of a brass or woodwind instrument that projects the sound outward.
bongos
A pair of small, open-bottomed drums of Cuban origin, played between the knees with the fingers and palms, essential to Latin and Afro-Cuban music.
bouzouki
A long-necked, round-bodied Greek stringed instrument with metal strings, central to rebetiko and modern Greek popular music.
brass
A family of instruments made of metal, played by buzzing the lips into a mouthpiece.
cajon
A box-shaped percussion instrument of Peruvian origin, played by sitting on it and striking the front face.
cajón
A box-shaped percussion instrument from Peru, played by sitting on top and striking the front face with the hands.
castanets
A pair of small, shell-shaped wooden clappers held in the hand and clicked together rhythmically, closely associated with Spanish flamenco music and dance.
celesta
A keyboard instrument where hammers strike metal plates, producing a bell-like tone.
celesta history
A keyboard instrument where hammers strike metal plates, producing a delicate, bell-like tone famously used in Tchaikovsky's "Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy."
cellist
A musician who plays the cello.
cello
A large string instrument played upright between the knees, with a rich, warm tone.
cimbalom
A large hammered dulcimer on legs, played with handheld beaters, central to Hungarian and Romani music and used in orchestral scores by Bartók, Kodály, and Stravinsky.
clarinet
A single-reed woodwind instrument with a wide range and warm tone.
clarinetist
A musician who plays the clarinet.
claves
A pair of short wooden sticks struck together to produce a sharp, penetrating click that anchors Latin rhythms.
clavichord
An early keyboard instrument where metal tangents strike strings, allowing dynamic control.
clavinet
An electromechanical keyboard instrument with a funky, percussive tone.
conga
A tall, narrow Cuban drum played with the hands, central to Latin percussion.
contrabass clarinet
The largest member of the clarinet family, sounding two octaves below the standard B-flat clarinet.
contrabassoon
The largest and lowest-pitched woodwind instrument, sounding an octave below the bassoon.
cor anglais
A double-reed woodwind instrument, larger and lower than the oboe. Also called English horn.
cowbell
A hand-held or mounted metallic percussion instrument producing a dry, cutting tone, indispensable in Latin music and widely used in rock and funk.
cymbals
Thin circular metal plates that produce sound when struck together or with a stick.
darbuka
A goblet-shaped hand drum central to Middle Eastern, North African, and Turkish music.
diatonic harmonica
A small free-reed instrument with ten holes, each producing two different notes (one on blow, one on draw), designed to play in a single key with bending techniques for chromatic notes.
didgeridoo
An Australian Aboriginal wind instrument made from a hollowed eucalyptus branch.
djembe
A rope-tuned, goblet-shaped hand drum from West Africa, capable of producing a wide range of tones from deep bass to sharp slaps.
double bass
The largest and lowest-pitched bowed string instrument in the orchestra.
drum machine
An electronic instrument that produces drum and percussion sounds, programmed with rhythmic patterns.
drums
Percussion instruments played by striking a membrane stretched over a frame.
duduk
An ancient Armenian double-reed woodwind instrument with a warm, mournful tone, carved from apricot wood.
dulcimer
A stringed instrument existing in two main forms: the hammered dulcimer struck with mallets, and the Appalachian dulcimer plucked or strummed on the lap.
electric guitar
A guitar that uses magnetic pickups to convert string vibration into electrical signals for amplification.
electric piano
A keyboard instrument that produces sound through electromechanical means — struck tines, reeds, or strings amplified by pickups — distinct from a synthesizer.
erhu
A two-stringed Chinese bowed instrument with a small resonating body, producing a hauntingly expressive tone often compared to the human voice.
euphonium
A conical-bore brass instrument in the baritone range, prized for its warm, mellow tone, and central to British brass band tradition.
fiddle
A violin when used in folk, country, or traditional music.
flugelhorn
A brass instrument similar to a trumpet but with a wider, conical bore that produces a darker, mellower tone, used primarily in jazz and brass bands.
flute
A woodwind instrument played by blowing across a hole, producing a bright, clear tone.
forte-piano
The early piano, predecessor of the modern instrument, with a lighter action and more transparent sound.
gamelan
A traditional ensemble from Indonesia, primarily Java and Bali, consisting mainly of tuned metallophones, gongs, and drums.
glass harmonica
A musical instrument consisting of rotating glass bowls played by touching wet fingers to the rims, producing ethereal, singing tones that were once feared to cause madness.
glockenspiel
A percussion instrument with tuned metal bars played with hard mallets, producing a bright, bell-like tone.
glockenspiel technique
A small metallophone with tuned steel bars arranged like a piano keyboard, struck with hard mallets to produce a bright, bell-like tone used in orchestral and marching band music.
gong
A broad family of flat or bossed metal percussion instruments found across Asia and used in orchestral, ceremonial, and popular music worldwide.
guitar
A fretted string instrument played by plucking or strumming, typically with six strings.
hang drum
A steel percussion instrument shaped like a flying saucer, producing ethereal, bell-like tones when struck with the hands.
harmon mute
A hollow metal mute inserted into a brass instrument's bell, famous for producing the thin, buzzy "wah-wah" sound associated with jazz trumpet.
harmonica
A small wind instrument with metal reeds, played by blowing and drawing air.
harp
A large stringed instrument played by plucking the strings with the fingers.
harpsichord
A keyboard instrument where strings are plucked rather than struck, predecessor of the piano.
heckelphone
A large double-reed woodwind instrument pitched an octave below the oboe, with a rich, powerful tone.
humbucker
A dual-coil guitar pickup designed to eliminate the electromagnetic hum of single-coil pickups.
kalimba
An African thumb piano consisting of metal tines mounted on a wooden resonator, played by plucking with the thumbs to produce gentle, bell-like tones.
kora
A 21-string West African bridge harp with a calabash resonator, central to the griot tradition of oral history.
lute
A plucked string instrument with a rounded body, popular in Renaissance music.
luthier
A craftsperson who builds and repairs stringed instruments.
mandolin
A small string instrument with paired strings, played with a plectrum.
maracas
A pair of hollow gourd or shell rattles filled with seeds or beads, shaken rhythmically and essential to Latin American, Caribbean, and popular music.
marimba
A percussion instrument similar to the xylophone but with resonators for a warmer tone.
mbira
An African lamellophone consisting of metal tines attached to a wooden board, played by plucking with the thumbs.
mellophone
A brass instrument shaped like a large trumpet, pitched in F or E-flat, used in marching bands as a more practical substitute for the French horn.
mellotron
An electromechanical keyboard instrument that plays pre-recorded tape strips of real instrument sounds when keys are pressed.
monitor speaker
A speaker designed for accurate, uncoloured audio reproduction used in recording and mixing.
mouthpiece
The part of a wind or brass instrument that the player blows into or across.
ney
An end-blown reed flute central to Middle Eastern, Turkish, and Sufi devotional music.
oboe
A double-reed woodwind instrument with a penetrating, nasal tone.
ondes Martenot
An early electronic instrument using a keyboard and a sliding ring to produce expressive, wavering tones.
organ
A keyboard instrument that produces sound by directing air through pipes or electronic means.
oud
A pear-shaped, fretless stringed instrument considered the ancestor of the European lute, central to Arabic, Turkish, and Persian classical music traditions.
pandeiro
A Brazilian frame drum with metal jingles, similar to a tambourine but with a unique tunable head and distinctive playing technique central to samba and choro music.
pedal steel guitar
A horizontally mounted guitar played with a bar and foot pedals that change string tunings in real time.
piccolo
A small flute sounding an octave higher than the standard flute.
pickup
A transducer on an electric guitar or bass that converts string vibrations into electrical signals.
pipe organ
The largest and one of the oldest musical instruments, producing sound by directing pressurized air through thousands of pipes of varying materials and sizes.
pitch pipe
A small device that produces fixed reference pitches for tuning.
qanun
A large, trapezoidal plucked string instrument used in Arabic, Turkish, and Persian classical music.
recorder
A woodwind instrument with a whistle mouthpiece and finger holes, one of the oldest and most widespread instruments in Western music history.
reed
A thin strip of cane or synthetic material that vibrates to produce sound in woodwind instruments.
santir
A hammered dulcimer of Persian and Middle Eastern origin, played with light wooden mallets, used in classical, folk, and popular music across Iran and the broader region.
sarangi
A bowed string instrument from North India, renowned for its ability to closely mimic the human voice.
sarod
A fretless stringed instrument of North India, known for its deep, resonant tone and powerful meend.
saxophone
A single-reed instrument made of brass, common in jazz and concert bands.
sitar
A plucked string instrument from India with sympathetic strings and a distinctive buzzing tone.
snare drum
A drum with metal wires (snares) stretched across the bottom head, producing a sharp, rattling sound.
sostenuto pedal
The middle pedal on a grand piano that selectively sustains only the notes being held at the moment it is depressed, while leaving subsequently played notes unaffected.
sousaphone
A large brass instrument similar to a tuba but designed to wrap around the player's body, with a forward-facing bell, created for marching bands.
sruti box
A small, hand-pumped bellows instrument from India that produces a continuous drone, used to provide tonal reference for Indian classical vocal and instrumental music.
steel drum
A tuned percussion instrument made from an oil barrel, originating in Trinidad and Tobago, producing bright, melodic tones.
synthesizer
An electronic instrument that generates and manipulates sound using electrical signals.
tabla
A pair of hand drums fundamental to Hindustani classical music, consisting of a smaller right-hand drum and a larger left-hand drum.
talking drum
A West African drum whose pitch can be altered during play to mimic the tones and rhythms of speech.
tam-tam
A large, flat, unpitched gong of indefinite pitch used in orchestral music, producing a dark, ominous wash of sound when struck with a heavy beater.
tambourine
A small frame drum with metal jingles, played by shaking or striking.
tanpura
A long-necked drone instrument that provides the continuous harmonic foundation for Indian classical music.
theremin
An electronic instrument played without physical contact, using two metal antennas to sense the position of the player's hands.
timpani
Large kettle-shaped drums tuned to specific pitches, also called kettledrums.
tone wood
The specific type of wood used in instrument construction, believed to significantly affect the instrument's sound.
triangle
A steel rod bent into a triangular shape, struck with a metal beater, producing a bright, shimmering tone used as an orchestral percussion instrument.
trombone
A brass instrument that uses a slide to change pitch.
trumpet
A brass instrument with a brilliant, penetrating tone, played with valves.
tuba
The largest and lowest-pitched brass instrument.
tuba variants
The tuba family encompasses several sizes and keys of the largest brass instruments, including the contrabass tuba, euphonium, sousaphone, and Wagner tuba.
tuning fork
A two-pronged metal device that produces a pure tone when struck, used as a pitch reference.
uilleann pipes
Irish bellows-blown bagpipes with a two-octave range, chanter, drones, and regulators, considered the most complex and expressive instrument in Irish traditional music.
ukulele
A small four-stringed instrument from Hawaii, similar to a guitar but higher-pitched and more compact.
vibraphone
A mallet percussion instrument with metal bars and motor-driven rotating discs that create a vibrato effect.
viola
A string instrument slightly larger and lower in pitch than the violin.
viola da gamba
A family of bowed, fretted string instruments held between the legs, prominent in Renaissance and Baroque music before being supplanted by the cello.
violin
The highest-pitched member of the string family, played with a bow.
wah pedal
A foot-operated effects pedal that rocks back and forth to sweep a bandpass filter, creating a vocal "wah-wah" sound on electric guitar.
wind instrument
Any instrument that produces sound by the player blowing air into or across it.
woodblock
A small, hollow wooden percussion instrument struck with a mallet to produce a sharp, clicking sound.
woodwind
A family of instruments that produce sound by splitting an airstream, using reeds or an embouchure hole.
xylophone
A percussion instrument with wooden bars struck by mallets.
zither
A flat stringed instrument played by plucking, strumming, or striking the strings.